


silver lining

by tatoeba



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-24
Updated: 2014-06-24
Packaged: 2019-07-24 09:44:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16172564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tatoeba/pseuds/tatoeba
Summary: Baekhyun should really know better than to make Kyungsoo angry.





	silver lining

**Author's Note:**

> For [this prompt](http://exopromptmeme.livejournal.com/15683.html?thread=7519299#t7519299) on EPM.

Baekhyun never thought that he would ever end up in a relationship with a human. It was always one of those things that seemed too farfetched (because after a hundred or so years as a vampire, that in itself wasn’t so crazy anymore). Humans were supposed to be their life source, not their life partners. Baekhyun sort of scoffed at how Zitao fell for that pale, flat-faced human who worked part-time at his favorite clothing store. He was determined not to let that sort of thing get to him. There were plenty of hot vamps around; what did Baekhyun need a human for, anyway?

That was, of course, before he met Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo was quiet, a little prickly, and so easily riled up and Baekhyun very much enjoys causing trouble. It was easy to get under his skin. And the nicest part about all of it, was that Kyungsoo, when Baekhyun told him he was a vampire, wasn’t even scared. 

(“Why would I be scared? You look like a 15 year old who just started dressing himself,” Kyungsoo said, glaring at Baekhyun’s ripped jeans, oversized t-shirt and crooked snapback with disdain.

Baekhyun might have been a little charmed.)

Kyungsoo was a challenge, and Baekhyun always did like a good challenge. It wasn’t easily, not when Kyungsoo seemed to want nothing to do with Baekhyun and the whole vampire thing wore off on him much faster than it did with Jongin, the human Junmyeon had been eyeing lately. That kid had also been a lot more terrified than Kyungsoo about the whole thing. To Kyungsoo it was like didn’t even matter and Baekhyun...Baekhyun really liked that. 

But that was all then, and this is now. A few months of constant pushing and pulling, of being generally obnoxious (“As is your wont,” Kyungsoo always says), of dragging Kyungsoo out of his shell until he’s no longer kicking and screaming on the way, Baekhyun has discovered that maybe it’s not so bad for a vampire and a human to be in a relationship after all. 

(“I told you so,” Zitao says smugly, wrapping toned arms around Sehun’s waist and notching his chin on his shoulder. Sehun gets this little smug quirk to his lips and his hands find Zitao’s at his stomach. 

Baekhyun pretends to gag. “You two are still disgusting, cut it out,” and he laughs as Sehun kicks him in the shin.)

Kyungsoo never minds how cold Baekhyun’s fingers feel when he holds his hands, is careful to keep anything silver out of his apartment, and always remembers to brush his teeth twice if he’s eaten anything with garlic in it before he lets Baekhyun push him into the couch and press their mouths together. He’s still as apathetic as he was when Baekhyun first met him, but he’s warmed up a lot, too. Must be all of Baekhyun’s charms. 

Except sometimes, Baekhyun knows his charms doesn’t win him any points. And today, he’s definitely crossed a line. Kyungsoo is the diligent, hard-working type. He really takes his studying seriously and Baekhyun’s known this since the beginning. They had met in the library, after all, Baekhyun sent there to pick up a book for Zitao since it’d been on his way home from work, and Kyungsoo was a little lump that had fallen asleep in-between a row of shelves, a pile of books all around him. Baekhyun never understood it; living over a hundred years as a vampire means Baekhyun’s tried the whole university thing a few times but he’d never been one for school, even as a human. It was easier to just take on odd jobs than to pretend to care about chemistry or math or whatever boring thing they taught in school these days. 

Kyungsoo, though, was really high-strung about that sort of thing and he made it very clear that Baekhyun shouldn’t disturb him when he’s working. 

(“It’s my last year,” Kyungsoo said a month ago, when Baekhyun whined that Kyungsoo spent too much time with his books and not enough with him. “And you are the worst kind of distraction.” 

“Who me?” Baekhyun replied, his eyes widening innocently as he slid a hand up Kyungsoo’s shirt.

Kyungsoo let out a long-suffering sigh, and yanked Baekhyun’s hand out to twist his arm until Baekhyun was crying to be let go. 

“Okay, okay! I get it! I won’t bother you!” he exclaimed and Kyungsoo released him with a satisfied smirk. 

“Good boy,” he said and kissed the corner of Baekhyun’s mouth and Baekhyun vowed to never let anyone find out how the human in this relationship is more frightening than the vampire.)

Baekhyun has been pretty good about respecting Kyungsoo’s weird study habits, but today. Today he’d been way too bored. Zitao was being sickeningly sweet with Sehun back at their apartment and even Junmyeon was out doing who-knows-what with that Jongin kid and Baekhyun let himself into Kyungsoo’s apartment through the window, even though he knows Kyungsoo hates that, and now he’s on the receiving end of one of Kyungsoo’s severely displeased looks.

“Hey, I’m sorry, okay?” Baekhyun says, trying to sound as placating as he can. “I know you don’t want me around when you--”

“Then why are you _here_ , Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo snaps. He looks tired, dark circles under his eyes like he hasn’t slept in days, maybe, and Baekhyun wants to drag him in bed and wrap his arms around him because when Kyungsoo is asleep he’s really too adorable. 

“I wanted to see you?” Baekhyun says, grinning at him hopefully. 

Kyungsoo snorts, turning back to his piles of notes across his desk. “You just saw me last night,” he says. 

“So?” Baekhyun counters and he walks over to cling to Kyungsoo from behind. “C’mon, you can take a break, can’t you?”

“I’ve _told_ you I can’t,” Kyungsoo says and he’s trying to elbow Baekhyun away. “Seriously, Baekhyun, I don’t have time for this. Exams are coming up and I have to finish this thesis and--”

“But I’m _bored_ ,” Baekhyun whines and he leans in to press his teeth just slightly against the slope of Kyungsoo’s neck. 

Kyungsoo shudders, and Baekhyun thinks delightedly that he’s won, but then Kyungsoo stands abruptly, practically knocking his chair to the floor. He pushes Baekhyun away, grumbling under his breath, and starts shoving things into his backpack. 

“What’re you doing?” Baekhyun asks, a little panicked by the palpable rage emanating from his boyfriend.

“I’m going to Yixing’s,” Kyungsoo says and Baekhyun frowns deeply at that. He’s met Yixing once and he didn’t particularly like the way he clings so easily to Kyungsoo and Kyungsoo allows it. “At least _he_ understands when I need the space to work.” 

Baekhyun gapes at him, trying to dredge up another apology, anything that will get Kyungsoo to stop looking at him like he’s the worst, but before he can string together the words, Kyungsoo has walked right of his apartment and left Baekhyun alone in its suffocating silence. 

 

-

 

It isn’t until sometime late into the next day that Kyungsoo returns to his apartment. Baekhyun stayed, because he had no where better to be and because he’d hoped, maybe, that Kyungsoo would feel bad enough to come back and apologize to him (no matter that it was Baekhyun at fault in the first place). 

Kyungsoo doesn’t seem surprised to find Baekhyun on the couch, but he doesn’t seem happy about it either. “You have your own apartment, you know,” Kyungsoo says. He’s brought lunch back with him and is leaving Baekhyun in the living room to put things away in the kitchen. 

Baekhyun scrambles after to follow and he knows he needs to make the first step in amends so he wraps his arms around Kyungsoo’s back. “Kyungsooooo,” he drawls, dragging out the last note as he gently noses along the crook of his neck, “I’m sorry about last night-- _Ow_!” 

He jerks back quickly, pressing his fingers to his cheek and hissing at the burn. He stares at Kyungsoo, who looks slightly amused, and then notices the sparkling piece of jewelry in Kyungsoo’s ear that Baekhyun’s never seen before. 

“What is that,” he deadpans. 

Kyungsoo looks wonderfully smug. “An earring,” he says, simply, like Baekhyun is an idiot. 

“No, I mean, is that--”

“Sterling silver? Yes, it is,” Kyungsoo says, and he grins at Baekhyun before turning away to pull out a plate from the cupboards next to the stove. “I had a stroke of genius last night,” he continues after a moment, “and this way you can’t bother me.”

Baekhyun stares at him, at the stupid glittering earring on his ear - when Kyungsoo turns, he notices its pair on his other ear - and then catches sight of the silver rings on Kyungsoo’s hands. In all the time they’ve together, Kyungsoo has practically never worn any jewelry and now it looks like he’s bought a bit of every kind, all in sterling silver, all to keep Baekhyun away. 

He pouts. “Is this about last night?” he asks. “You’re not really that angry, are you?”

“Do you really think I’d be wearing all this if I wasn’t?” Kyungsoo retorts. “And it isn’t just about last night. It’s about every time I’ve told you I need space, and you’ve wormed your way into it with complete disregard to me.”

“I’m sorry!” Baekhyun huffs, crossing his arms over his chest. “It’s not like I do it on purpose.”

Kyungsoo gives him a Look and Baekhyun deflates. “Okay, fine, so I do, but it’s just because I like you that much!”

“Nice try,” Kyungsoo says, and he jabs Baekhyun hard in the chest with a finger. “But I have too much to do right now and I can’t afford getting distracted.” 

“So you’re just banishing me from touching you at all??” Baekhyun exclaims, following after Kyungsoo as he heads toward the couch, plate of food in his hands. 

“Exactly,” Kyungsoo says with a smile and Baekhyun already hates this because he can’t even pull him close and kiss him now, not when Kyungsoo has made himself a human vampire weapon. 

“This is entirely unfair,” Baekhyun sulks, sitting at the opposite end of the couch, and Kyungsoo’s smile only widens. 

 

-

 

“Wow, you must have pissed him off something fierce if he’s resorting to such drastic measures,” Zitao says the next day when Baekhyun finally returns to his apartment. He’d tried to talk Kyungsoo out of his ridiculous grudge but it hadn’t gone so well. 

(“Maybe I’ll even get a silver tongue piercing,” Kyungsoo mused aloud over dinner. “That would really keep you away.”

“How are you so cruel,” Baekhyun whined from the other side of the room. Kyungsoo had pulled out silver utensils to use to eat (“They were a gift from my grandmother, but I never had a reason to use them, until now!” he’d said, looking far too happy about it) and Baekhyun couldn’t stand to be close enough in case Kyungsoo accidentally-on-purpose dropped the knife into his foot. “Although, you would be really hot with a tongue piercing.”

“Good, then I’ll get it done tomorrow.” 

Baekhyun wanted to lunge at him and beg him not to, but instead he could only cry, “ _Noo_!” while Kyungsoo quietly finished eating.)

“It’s the worst, I can’t get close to him without feeling like I’m burning from all the silver he’s wearing,” Baekhyun says, rolling around in his bed unhappily. “He would probably make a suit of armor out of silver if it would keep me away.” 

“I like him,” Zitao says unnecessarily. “You should bring him around more.”

“Go away,” Baekhyun says, “you are entirely unhelpful.”

Zitao laughs and he pats Baekhyun’s pat lightly. “Just give it time,” he says sagely. “He’ll probably come around after he’s finished with all his work.”

“But I can’t wait that long,” Baekhyun whines and Zitao’s responding laughter definitely doesn’t help one bit. 

 

-

 

Kyungsoo’s jewelry tactic goes on for the next few days and Baekhyun grows more and more depressed about it. Apologizing nearly twenty times a day seems to do nothing to crack Kyungsoo’s resolve and it’s not fun at all, being over at Kyungsoo’s place and having to sit five feet away so he doesn’t accidentally burn himself on one of the many pieces of jewelry Kyungsoo’s stuck on his body. 

“I can’t believe you’re still doing this,” Baekhyun grumbles on Day 5. Kyungsoo says he shouldn’t refer to it like it’s some kind of prison, but that’s practically how Baekhyun feels. 

“I can’t believe I never thought of this sooner,” Kyungsoo says back without even looking up from where he’s flipping through a book with tons of little post-its sticking out of its pages and typing up something on his laptop. 

By Day 7, Baekhyun starts to wonder how much burns from the silver he can withstand for maybe one quick hug or kiss. He probably won’t actually risk it, but it’s tempting, because this is the longest fight they’ve ever had and Baekhyun is usually good at getting Kyungsoo to forgive him with conveniently timed kisses and hands down his pants. Baekhyun can’t even do that, this time. All he can do is whine from the corners of Kyungsoo’s apartment until Kyungsoo is threatening to throw the garlic he’d bought from the stove at his head. 

“Why would you even buy that shit?” Baekhyun exclaims. 

“I wanted something Italian to eat tonight,” Kyungsoo says simply and Baekhyun wants to cry. 

“ _Kyungsoo_ ,” he pleads, “talk to me, _please_.” 

“There’s nothing to talk about, Baekhyun,” he says with a shrug and he gives up on his work to head into the kitchen and presumably start on dinner. 

Baekhyun follows at a safe distance. “Hasn’t this gone on long enough?” he asks. “I get it, I really do. I swear I’ll be better.” 

Kyungsoo looks at him, really looks at him for what feels like the first time since their stupid argument, and Baekhyun puts on his best kicked-puppy face, the one that usually makes Kyungsoo roll his eyes but still gently pet his head or kiss him slowly. And for a second, it looks like maybe Kyungsoo is going to cave, but then he’s turning his back and pulling out the garlic from the fridge and Baekhyun feels like he might die just from the smell. 

“Are you trying to _kill me_?” he exclaims, stepping backward and covering his nose with his sleeve. Kyungsoo looks down at the garlic, then back up at Baekhyun, who takes another step back and says, “Don’t answer that!” 

He turns on his heel and hides himself in Kyungsoo’s bedroom and definitely doesn’t hug Kyungsoo’s pillow because it’s the closest he has to the real thing. 

 

-

 

It’s Day 10 when Kyungsoo starts to loosen up considerably. Baekhyun vaguely remembers he had a few exams the day before and with those out of the way, it’s clear the stress has eased from Kyungsoo’s shoulders. He’s also not wearing nearly as much jewelry today, and Baekhyun likes to think that his constant whining is finally starting to wear Kyungsoo down. There’s only so much a person can take and Baekhyun is known to be very persuasive (“You mean annoying,” Junmyeon always says). 

Kyungsoo has either forgotten to put on one of his rings or left it off on purpose, but Baekhyun doesn’t care about the reason. He just cares that he can actually reach out and grab Kyungsoo’s left hand and hold it without burning himself. 

“Shit,” Kyungsoo says, trying to tug his hand away. “I forgot.” 

“No! You can’t let go now,” Baekhyun complains, lacing their fingers together and enjoying the warmth from Kyungsoo’s palm against his much cooler skin. 

“How do you expect me to work with one hand?” Kyungsoo says, but instead of sounding angry like he probably would have a few days ago, right now he’s amused, an eyebrow quirked and his pretty lips pulling into a smile. 

“I can think of lots of things you can do with just one hand,” Baekhyun says lasciviously, dragging Kyungsoo’s hand to press flat on his stomach. 

He expects Kyungsoo to pull his hand back and maybe punch him, but he doesn’t expect Kyungsoo to laugh, his face bright in his mirth and Baekhyun is sure he’s won, now. Gotten through to Kyungsoo and made everything better because this whole thing is so stupid, so so stupid, and all he wants is to pull Kyungsoo close and make up for the past week of torture. 

“You’re ridiculous,” Kyungsoo says after his laughter his died down. 

Baekhyun pretends offense. “ _I’m_ ridiculous?” he says. “You’re the one who turned himself into a vampire’s worst nightmare just prove a point.”

“Well, it worked, didn’t it?” Kyungsoo retorts, but then his shoulders slump a bit and he looks down at their joined hands. “But, okay, you might be right. A little. I might’ve gone too far.” 

“I wasn’t being very fair to you, either,” Baekhyun admits. “I’m sorry. I know I can be a little--”

“Annoying? Obnoxious? A pain in the ass?” Kyungsoo says, smirking in amusement at the way Baekhyun pouts. “You’d think after having lived so long, you would have learned how to tone that all down.” 

“You like it though,” Baekhyun says, poking at Kyungsoo’s stomach. “You like me.” 

He grins at Kyungsoo, only to squawk indignantly when Kyungsoo shrugs and says, “Maybe.” 

“Sooo mean,” Baekhyun whines, flopping back against Kyungsoo’s bed and mock-glaring at the ceiling. “If only I’d fallen for some cute human, like Jongin, who didn’t always make fun of me or try to _kill me_ with garlic and--”

His words are cut off by a sudden pair of lips against his; familiar lips that Baekhyun hasn’t been able to kiss in _far_ too long, and he instantly gives up on his train of thought to focus on the much better path laid in front of him. Kyungsoo’s mouth, warm and slick against his, Kyungsoo’s fingers sliding up his chest, up further into his hair, Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo. 

“You wouldn’t want someone like that,” Kyungsoo says, and there’s this darkness in his eyes when they pull back to look at each other. It’s almost possessive, jealousy, maybe, and Baekhyun really, really likes that. “It’d be too boring.”

That’s probably true, but still Baekhyun doesn’t mind teasing, “I don’t know, it’s tempting.”

“Shut up,” Kyungsoo says, teeth nipping at Baekhyun’s bottom lip. “It’s been too long since we’ve--”

“And whose fault is that?!” Baekhyun exclaims, only Kyungsoo just shuts him up with his mouth again. Baekhyun isn’t complaining, because he’d definitely rather make out than talk, except they only last a few seconds before Kyungsoo reaches out to grab his arm and Baekhyun feels that terrible burning sensation against his bare skin. 

He pushes Kyungsoo back with a hiss of pain, staring at the angry splotch on his skin and then over to Kyungsoo whose eyes are wide in horror. “I forgot I was still--” he says, hastily pulling the bracelet off his wrist that had burned Baekhyun, along with the ring on that hand, and the earrings still in his ears. 

“Maybe you really _are_ trying to kill me,” Baekhyun says slowly, watching as Kyungsoo dumps his jewelry on his dresser, but then he laughs when he catches the look Kyungsoo gives him through the mirror. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding, come here.” He waves at Kyungsoo and grins widely when he complies, and it really is so nice to be this close again after ten days without. “Please don’t ever do that again.” 

“Don’t be a fucking nuisance then,” Kyungsoo says back and he squeezes Baekhyun’s nape in the way that makes him shudder. 

Baekhyun makes no promises, especially not ones he knows he will break within hours, and Kyungsoo probably knows that, too. That something like this is bound to happen again, but they’ll get through it because they always do. Kyungsoo might be human, but that no longer means anything in the grand scheme of things. Baekhyun still likes him, especially now as he presses light kisses up his neck and apologizes for the burn. 

“I never actually meant to hurt you,” he says and Baekhyun holds him tighter. 

“I know,” he says and pushes Kyungsoo down against the bed so he can lean in and kiss him again. 

 

(“Hey, so, about that tongue piercing you said you wanted,” Baekhyun says, later. 

“No.” Kyungsoo shoots down that dream within seconds, his answer a little muffled in the crook of Baekhyun’s shoulder but still clear. 

Baekhyun pouts. Two minutes later: “What if you pierced your dick--” He wheezes as Kyungsoo elbows him in the gut on his way out of bed and Baekhyun’s eyes widen as he realizes what he’s doing. “No, wait, stop--I didn’t mean it, please don’t put the jewelry back on!”)


End file.
